The Arranged Marriage
by asari24
Summary: When Rukawa agreed to an arranged marriage, he never expected life with another person could be so... complicated. Will he trade his basketball ambition to be a family man, or will Sendoh beat him to it? Set in college. RukawaxOC, SendohxOC
1. The Wedding

_A/N: This is my attempt at writing a believable Rukawa romance fic. My objective is to keep Rukawa as in-character as possible, and to try and tell the story from his POV as much as possible. It's been a lot of fun getting into his head and I hope you enjoy the story!_

* * *

"Fast break!"

Kaede raced down the court and caught the long pass from his teammate. He pivoted; two opponents stood before him, eyeing him closely, breathing raggedly. _Are these really college players?_ He thought._ Too easy._ He broke through their tired defense with a burst of speed.

_One, two, and up_. The ball left his fingertips and swished gently through the net, extending their team's lead. The score was 20-16.

"All right – practice over," called Maki. "Good job everyone."

_Already? _

"Nice play, Rukawa," came a smooth voice behind him. Kaede turned and saw Sendoh with his signature easy smile. "I'm glad you decided to join us."

"I didn't join for you."

With his outstanding talent, Kaede had received many offers from universities around Japan. But, as with Shohoku, he chose Seikei purely because it was closest to his house. The fact that two of the best high school players he had known – Sendoh and Maki – were in Seikei was quite secondary.

Sendoh was unflappable. "Still, I'm glad."

Kaede grunted in reply and walked over to Maki.

"Captain."

"Yes, Rukawa?"

"I… won't be able to make it for practice tomorrow."

Maki raised an eyebrow, trying to think of what else Rukawa could be doing on a Friday afternoon instead of playing basketball.

"And why is that?" he asked, curious.

"I'm getting married," Rukawa replied simply, as if it were the most common thing in the world. "I will be back on Monday."

There was a stunned silence.

"You… what?"

Kaede frowned. Did he not hear him the first time?

"Getting married."

Several hoots and wolf-whistles echoed around the gym.

"To who?" asked Maki incredulously. Rukawa getting married or having anything remotely to do with romance seemed a most ridiculous notion. And yet, here they were, having this most ridiculous conversation.

Kaede scratched his chin. _To who indeed?_ It seemed like an obvious question now, but when he was first faced with the proposition, it had seemed like an insignificant detail. All he knew was that she was daughter to some important people that his father did business with. Anything beyond that was irrelevant. He vaguely remembered that she had requested to meet him before the wedding, but he declined.

"_Son, I need you," his father said. "Will you step up, like your brother did before you? For the family?" _

"Well?"

"That's not important." Kaede replied coldly.

A small crowd had gathered around him, giving him pats on the back and offering their congratulations, which he brushed off uncomfortably. He suddenly wished he had thought of some other excuse instead of, well, giving the game away.

He cleared his throat and picked up his bag. "I'm going home now."

Sendoh and Maki exchanged a look as the former Shohoku ace exited the gym without another word.

"He's a weird one…"

Sendoh smiled. "We already knew that."

* * *

Kaede cycled down the street, feeling the cool evening breeze on his face. He passed a basketball court and came to a gentle halt. _Nobody's here. _Though he had just come from practice, he already felt the itch to stop and play for a bit.

"_Be home early tonight. You need to try on the suits before tomorrow."_

He grit his teeth and pedaled on. It all seemed so silly; a suit was a suit. They should be glad if he didn't show up in pajamas.

Fifteen minutes later, he was standing around in one of the aforementioned suits with several tailors fussing over him. He looked at himself in the full-length mirror. It had been a long time since his last formal outing. When his father still lived here, Kaede had had to wear suits and attend functions in this house almost every week. He absolutely hated it. It was quite a relief when his father moved into a new house with his new wife, and he gained some measure of freedom.

_I'll be my own man after tomorrow. With my own house._

"Please raise your arms, Young Master."

Kaede sighed and complied with their instructions while they did their work. When at last his ordeal ended, he felt like a battered doll that had been pulled in several directions at once. He needed his bed, but the butler appeared first.

"Young Master," the butler bowed respectfully, "the wedding planners would like to run through the day's programme with you. They are waiting in the study."

Groaning, Kaede made his way down the ridiculous spiral staircase to the second floor, where the study was. He emerged from the room 30 minutes later, having barely registered a word they were saying.

And again, the damned butler.

"The Master awaits you in his rooms."

_What now…? _Kaede thought irritably.

Eager to get it over with, he jogged briskly up the stairs and down the long corridor to his father's room. He knocked and announced himself.

"Father, it's me."

"Come in."

He pushed open the formal wooden doors and entered. Though it had not been in use for many years, the servants had obviously kept the room clean and tidy for just such an occasion. His father sat by one side of a large square table and looked at him expectantly. Kaede sat down opposite him.

The two men looked at each other, saying nothing. Father and son looked nothing alike. The elder Rukawa was tanned with a square, chiseled jaw with a strong nose to match, and his greying hair was swept elegantly back. Kaede was often told that he had delicate features which resembled his mother's, but he'd only ever seen her in old photos. His brother, on the other hand, was the spitting image of his father.

The older man broke the silence. "Kaede, I am glad we could reach an agreement. This is a very important business partnership. I'm proud of you for coming through."

_Proud of me?_ Kaede immediately made a mental list of all his basketball achievements, every one of them more impressive than walking down the aisle and saying a few words.

Out loud, he said: "If that's all, I'll be going to bed."

"Of course. You need rest."

_I can't believe I came all the way up here for this. _Kaede stood up to leave.

"Kaede?"

"Yes?"

"Don't screw up." _There we go. I knew this has been too cordial by far._ Kaede froze by the doors, that cold voice sending a chill down his spine. It was half-warning, half-command. His father was used to being obeyed, and his tone carried hints of what awaited him if he did screw things up. Rukawa Kaede feared nothing and no one, but his father was the one exception.

He forced himself to snap out of it.

"Don't worry. I'll do my duty." With that, he shut the doors behind him. _My own man, _he reminded himself, striding briskly away. _My own house._ He turned a corner and entered his room. _Tomorrow_. He slammed the door shut before falling face-down onto his bed.

* * *

Kaede had no trouble falling asleep despite the fact that he would wake up to his "big day". He would have slept through it if he could, but unfortunately such things as getting married required one to be awake.

The servants roused him at 8 the next morning – a day too early, in Kaede's opinion. The rest of the morning was a blur as he drifted in and out of sleep. He slept in the car to the hotel and when they finally arrived, he was escorted half-awake to his suite where he promptly fell asleep again. It seemed he had been sleeping for no longer than 5 minutes when there came a knock on his door.

"Kaede?" Came a man's voice from outside the suite. "I'm coming in."

_What was the point of knocking if you were going to come in anyway?_

He got up reluctantly.

"Daddy, is that the groom?" Came a child's voice.

_A child?_ With great effort, Kaede opened his eyes and saw a wide-eyed boy, aged around 5 or so, hovering in front of him.

"Yes, that's your uncle Kaede. Now greet him properly."

"Good morning, uncle Kaede!" the little boy chirped. He then jumped onto the bed and started tugging on Kaede's hair and cheeks, much to his chagrin.

"My little brother's all grown up!" The boy's father smiled down at him.

Kaede narrowed his eyes at this man, his older brother. Strange to think of him as the same rebellious young man who had insisted on moving to America in exchange for marrying a woman he barely knew. Kaede had tried to negotiate for the same, but his father would not hear of having both sons living in a foreign land. And so, his dream of playing college basketball in America had to be temporarily shelved. _You stole my chance._

"Hideaki," his voice was curt. "Did you really have to wake me up?" He turned to point at the little boy. "Is that thing yours?"

"Haha… yes, that's my boy," Hideaki replied sheepishly, trying to pry the active boy away from Kaede. "Father is having breakfast at the lobby with your future in-laws. The bride is there, too." His face turned serious. "I thought you might want to see her before… you know."

"Why should I? It's pointless. I can see her later."

"You're not at all curious?"

Kaede raised an eyebrow. "Should I be? Is she hideous?" _Or preferably, invisible?_

"Well, no…"

"Then I'm sure I'll survive."

Kaede stood up and stretched, yawning. Normally he would have towered over most people in a room, but height ran in the family, and Hideaki was just as tall. They regarded each other for a moment while the little boy occupied himself with trying to rip open the pillow.

"Are you ready for this?" Hideaki asked softly. The last time they saw each other, Kaede was already tall and big for his age, but still a teenager nonetheless. Though Kaede now matched him for height, nothing much else had changed; it was as if the same teenager from 7 years ago was peering out at him from those cold eyes. _Do you even know the vows?_

That teenager was obviously in no mood for a heart-to-heart talk. "If you insist on lingering, I suppose I should go wash up."

Hideaki watched silently as his brother shuffled sleepily to the bathroom. Kaede emerged from the bathroom 5 minutes later, looking marginally more awake.

"So, what did you want with me?"

Hideaki smiled. "I thought we could have breakfast."

* * *

Kaede gobbled down his breakfast. All his damned brother seemed to want to talk about was the whole marriage thing. Kaede could not see what all the fuss was about. It was not like he would ever date or get married out of his own accord, so this arrangement in exchange for a new house seemed like a perfectly good trade. With these types of marriages, he supposed the two parties would come to some reasonable agreement about how to cohabitate with minimal impact on each other's lives. _Hideaki obviously failed in that respect_, he frowned, thinking of the little rascal earlier that morning.

"Why did you agree to this, Kaede?"

Kaede grunted. "The old man would have kicked me out. He said as much."

"You could have lived without his money. Find a part-time job and rent a room."

"It's a bit late for that, don't you think?" he replied sarcastically. "Besides, I play basketball after school. I don't have time for a part-time job."

The conversation then shifted to Kaede's basketball career, much to his relief. He was far from a great conversationalist, but he tried to keep his brother occupied with the topic as much as possible. Basketball was the one thing he knew, so he was slightly more comfortable talking about it.

The time soon came for the groom to get dressed and prepare. Hideaki gave him a hug before they parted, which Kaede took to be ominous – such displays of affection were usually for comforting the sick or dying. Perhaps his brother was trying to tell him something.

* * *

His palms were clammy and his knees felt weak, but Kaede was the picture of calmness as he stood at the front of the large chapel, waiting for the bride's entrance. His brother, as the best man, stood solemnly at his side.

He tried not to look at the rows and rows of faces he did not know, all appraising him silently. The crowds at his games usually had no effect on him, but this was a different type of performance. There was no opponent to beat here, just phrases to be uttered at the right time.

The whole atmosphere bore down on him as he stood there waiting. It was unbearable. He felt suffocated in this shirt, this suit, this chapel. He desperately wanted to rip off his bowtie and sprint away, but his body felt like lead. He caught his father's eyes in the front row. _Do not screw up. _The warning rang in his ears.

The chapel doors finally opened after what seemed like forever and the violinists launched into pompous entrance music. Fresh air and sunlight streamed in from outside and for a moment, Kaede was blinded. Squinting, he could just about make out the bride entering the hall with a man by her side. As they drew closer, he saw that she had chosen a modest long-sleeved gown, which Kaede supposed spoke well of her. She held a bouquet of white flowers in one hand and her father's hand in the other. The delicate veil obscured her features, but he could see that she had worn her hair down. A younger girl strode behind her, carrying the train of the gown.

Kaede waited impatiently as she took her own sweet time in making her way to the front, pausing every few steps as if to the music. Already she annoyed him. _It will all be over soon, _he assured himself.

Finally they arrived, and the bride's father looked at him expectantly.

"Bow!" Came a hiss from beside him. Hideaki.

Grateful for the reminder, Kaede bowed stiffly to the older man, who then handed over the bride's hand. Kaede took it gingerly, very aware that his own palm was sweaty and cold. She was not wearing gloves, a fact that she was surely coming to regret.

And so, hand in hand, the bride and groom turned to face the minister, who launched into some speech or other. Kaede kept his gaze firmly in front, not wanting to risk awkward eye contact any more than necessary.

"I do," she said uncertainly.

The minister then turned to him and said some more things. When he stopped, Kaede recognised it as his cue to say the same.

"I do," he mumbled.

"Please turn to face each other and exchange rings," the minister intoned.

Kaede quickly dropped her hand and wiped his palm on his pants as discreetly as he could.

"Take the ring," Hideaki whispered as he held out the ring pillow.

Once the ring exchange was done, it was time to lift the veil. Kaede took the limp fabric and lifted it carefully over her bowed head. She looked up at him, and he down at her. A few tears rolled down her cheeks. _Great, _he thought, rolling his eyes. No doubt she must have had fancy ideas of being married to a famed college athlete, and now reality had intruded.

"You may kiss the bride."

Kaede's eyes widened in terror. He coughed and looked to his brother for help, but Hideaki merely chuckled and urged him on.

He turned back to his bride, whose tears were falling more freely now with every passing second. Clearly she was not comforted by the thought of being kissed by a lout such as himself. Resigned, he bent down and gave her a quick peck on the lips, which was followed by raucous applause from the audience. _I know this part_, he thought, offering her his arm. She took it and, as they strode down the aisle to exit the chapel, he could taste her tears on his lips.


	2. The Morning After

Kaede was eager to retire to his room once the ceremony was done with, but the photographer would have his due.

"Let's try another one, with a smile this time!" called the photographer. They had been posing for pictures for half an hour and Kaede's patience was wearing dangerously thin. Rukawa Kaede did not smile over such frivolous things, and he did not intend to start now. He vaguely remembered smiling during the Sannoh match, when he was pitted against the best high school player in Japan, Eiji Sawakita. Now that was something to smile about. _He must be in America now,_ Kaede thought bitterly.

"Please, can we just get this over with? Just smile," hissed the woman beside him – his now-wife, whose name he recently learned was Yanagi. She had gone to have her face touched up after the ceremony. There were no more tears now.

Kaede looked down at her coldly. "I don't see anything smile about."

She was the picture of indignation. "You – "

"Look here!"

Instinctively, her head snapped back towards the camera and she flashed the same smile that she had used for the past hundred or so pictures. Kaede rolled his eyes. _Crying one minute and smiling the next… how unseemly._

The photographer eventually gave up on getting Kaede to smile, and they moved on to the family portraits. Yanagi politely introduced herself to his relatives, most of whom even he didn't know. Amidst this meaningless activity, Kaede's mind drifted to basketball. Playing on the same team as Sendoh and Maki would be… interesting.

When they were done with the tiring business of photo-taking, the crowd dispersed back to their accommodations. At last, he was free to return and get ready for his next ordeal… the reception.

"Will you walk with me?"

Without waiting for a reply, Yanagi slipped her arm around his and tugged him forward. From the corner of his eye, he could see his brother giggling at the sight of him being dragged around by this tiny woman. _Seriously…_

She halted once they were well away from any onlookers and unlinked her arm from his. She smiled and held out a hand. "It occurred to me that we should introduce ourselves properly. I'm Hishida Yanagi."

Kaede regarded her suspiciously. For someone who was just crying at being married to him, she was being awfully friendly. "I know. The minister mentioned it."

Her smile faded at his response. When it was clear that he would not be shaking her hand, she turned a little pink and withdrew it. "I'm sure you will agree that… this is not what we would have chosen for ourselves. But here we are." When he made no reply, she continued. "I hope at least… that we can be friends."

_Friends?_ Rukawa Kaede did not need friends. He needed teammates. He needed to play basketball. He needed to get out of here.

He wished she would stop patronizing him. "Why are you doing this? We don't have to be anything."

She stared at him in disbelief, which quickly gave way to what looked like a mixture of anger and humiliation. "Are you always such an ass?"

He shrugged.

She turned angrily to leave, muttering under her breath. Unfortunately, in her haste to get away, she had barely taken two steps before tripping over her gown. It was not a pretty sight; she was face down on the pavement and had scraped her hands and elbows where the lace on her gown was torn.

_Well, this is awkward. _He supposed the polite thing to do would be to offer her a hand, so he did. Ignoring it, she propped herself up and glared at him hatefully. With great effort, she managed to stagger upright and continue on her way. Kaede shrugged and walked a little behind her since they were both headed back to the hotel, but after barely a few steps, she tripped again. This time, Kaede managed to catch her arm before she fell. She cursed and shrugged his hand off.

"You should arrange that properly, do'ahou," he said, pointing to the train of her gown.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "What did you call me?"

He bent down to pick up the unruly train and arranged it neatly behind her. "There."

"I can take care of myself," she said defiantly before stalking off.

* * *

The dinner reception was a tedious affair. The bride appeared in no less than three evening gowns, and Kaede was expected to escort her down the ballroom each time. He noticed that she wore long gloves past the elbows, presumably to hide the scrapes from her fall.

She seemed to have calmed down from her earlier tantrum and was now mingling comfortably with some of the guests. For his part, he sat quietly at table hoping nobody would bother him. It was a vain hope, of course. He did not mind the congratulations so much, but the middle-aged women coming up to him and gushing about how handsome he was made him extremely uncomfortable. Yanagi picked up on that and so, every time that happened, she squeezed his arm and made a show of how delighted she was at having landed such a good-looking husband.

"I don't appreciate that." He told her coldly.

"Don't be so modest, my love." She beamed at him, voice dripping with sarcasm.

He didn't usually drink, but the situation demanded it. He took several swigs of whiskey before the night was done.

The bride and groom were now expected to stand by the ballroom entrance and thank each guest as they left, but by the end of the reception he could barely keep himself awake. He was sure he'd nodded off several times.

Once everyone had left, he summoned enough energy to walk back to his suite unaided.

"Hey! Wait for me!" she called.

"Why? Go back to your own room."

She stared at him. "I'm supposed to spend the night in yours." _Oh. _He felt his ears grow warm. She frowned at him and held up an accusing finger. "Why are you blushing? We're not going to do anything. I warn you, don't even try."

He could have laughed at the absurdity of the suggestion. Instead, he replied, "Don't worry, I wouldn't dream of it."

He regarded her for a moment. Though her gown was not as elaborate as the one for the ceremony, it still had a small train and she looked quite unsteady in her heels. Sighing, he held out his arm. She looked at him skeptically.

"Are you coming or not?" he asked impatiently. She took his arm reluctantly, and they walked back in silence to his suite.

When they arrived, Kaede was most displeased to see that the hotel staff had taken liberties with the room décor. There were rose petals on the bed arranged in a heart shape, and several candles were lit around the room. With a sigh, he closed the door behind them.

Yanagi's luggage had been brought up to the suite. She hurriedly took off her heels and rummaged through the bag, pulling out a set of pajamas and some toiletries. "I'm going to use the bathroom first."

Once she had shut the bathroom door, Kaede combed through his own bags for his pajamas. He changed into them fairly quickly and waited to use the bathroom, but at some point he must have knocked out.

"Oi," she shook him gently at first, then harder. "You can use the bathroom now."

He sat up reluctantly and rubbed his eyes. "Okay," he said, stifling a yawn. "But I'm calling dibs on the bed."

"What?"

"You can sleep on the couch."

"Wha – why should you get the bed?"

"I'm too tall to sleep on the couch."

She shrugged and crawled onto the bed and into the covers. The rose petals spilled onto the floor. "That's your problem." Smiling up at him, she said, "good night, my love!"

He resisted the urge to strangle her and went to use the bathroom. When he was done, he saw that she was fast asleep right smack in the middle of the bed, looking ever so peaceful and content. It was clear to him what had to be done… prying the covers away from her, he scooped her up in his arms. He then walked over to the couch and dumped her there unceremoniously. She did not wake. _Good night, my love_, he thought wryly.

* * *

Kaede felt a splash of cold water on his face and sat up with a start. He instinctively raised his arm to hit the person responsible, but then he saw Yanagi glowered down at him. Furious as he was, hitting a girl was still taboo. He settled for giving her his death stare.

"Did you want me to freeze to death?" she asked accusingly. "You could have at least given me a blanket."

They glared at each other like two lions ready to tear at each other's throats.

"I hate people who wake me up," he seethed, water dripping down his face and onto his neck and chest. His hand longed to find its way to her face. _I will not hit a girl, I will not hit a girl…_

"Noted." Something in her tone sounded ominous. He was having serious second thoughts about how easy this whole marriage thing would be.

She handed him a face towel. "Go wash up," she said, with an air of command. "We'll go have breakfast together."

He frowned at her. She did not look like the same person he married. She seemed much younger without all that makeup, with chubbier cheeks and wider eyes. Her long hair was kept back by a simple white hairband. All in all, she looked like a very ordinary schoolgirl.

"Go yourself," he said, snatching the towel.

It was as if his words swept all the confidence out of her. She sat down on the couch and hesitated, twiddling her thumbs. "I… I don't like eating alone."

_Have I become a babysitter now?_ He thought sourly.

* * *

Yanagi stared at the mountain of food on his plate, amazed. "How can you eat so much?"

He grunted.

She looked down wistfully at her own plate. It consisted of a few baked beans and roasted tomatoes. She poked at a few beans with her fork. "I'm on a diet."

She certainly did not look like she needed a diet, but Kaede said nothing. They ate for a while in silence. When he was done, he stood up. "Seconds. Do you want anything?"

She shook her head.

"Suit yourself."

When he returned with more food from the buffet line, he saw that his brother had joined Yanagi at the table. They seemed to be laughing about something. Kaede didn't understand why Yanagi was taking such an interest in his family; he certainly had no interest whatsoever in hers.

"Kaede-kun," she greeted him sweetly as he took his seat at the table.

He shot her a glare, then turned to his brother. "Shouldn't you be heading back already?"

"Yeah, I just wanted to stop by to congratulate the both of you." Hideaki smiled, standing up. To Kaede, he said, "Yanagi is a very nice girl."

Yanagi laughed. "You must come visit us soon. And please bring your wife along, too."

The newlyweds stood up and bowed as he left the table, then settled down once more.

"He tells me you're a great basketball player," she began after a few minutes' silence. "My brother plays, too. He's on his high school team." She sounded very proud. Kaede stopped listening to what she was saying and bristled at being compared to a no-name high school player. He did not merely 'play' basketball… he was a magician on the court. She should see him in action someday.

"… give him a few pointers. I think he would like that very much."

When he did not reply, she continued. "I like to run. Do you run? I run every morning. We can run together. Basketball players must keep fit, right?"

"Are you always this chatty?" he asked flatly. To him, silence was golden. If this kept up, they would have a big problem.

She went on, nonplussed by his rudeness. "What do you study at school? Since I'll be living in Kanagawa now, I transferred to Seikei, too. I study..."

_Blah blah… not listening._

"...I'm from Kyoto." At this, she sighed. "My parents already left, along with the rest of my family. And now I'm all alone." Her voice cracked with emotion. Sensing danger, Kaede finally looked up from his food. "All my friends are in Kyoto." _Uh oh._ The tears were welling up. She wiped them away hurriedly.

_Oh god, not again._ Kaede did not know how to respond to such things; his instinct was to run away. "I'll get you a drink," he muttered before leaving the table. To his disappointment, the situation had not improved when he returned.

He set down the cup in front of her. "Have some tea," he offered lamely. He must have said it wrong since she started sobbing louder and louder, attracting stares from the other tables.

"Keep it down!" he hissed, but at that she wailed even louder. _This looks bad._ He rubbed his temples, feeling the effects of the previous night's liquor coming on. "I can't deal with this." He turned to leave.

She was still sobbing as he left the restaurant.

* * *

Kaede turned on the shower and closed his eyes, feeling the water run down his body. He thought of Yanagi crying in the restaurant. She must really hate him; there was no other explanation. No matter. That would not be an issue unless it interfered with basketball, which he thought it unlikely.

Still, it was a shame. He had hoped they could at least put up with each other since they would be living under the same roof. Perhaps she could rent another room somewhere… _No, that's too harsh._ He sighed.

When he was done, he turned off the shower and toweled off. _Is she back in the room?_ He opened the bathroom door slightly and peeked out. She wasn't there. Shrugging, he got dressed and packed up his things.

When he was done, it was close to checkout time and she had not shown up. _Great. Will I be held accountable if she's run away?_

He picked up both their bags and left the room.

* * *

After checking out, Kaede finally found her slumped onto an armchair in the corner of the lobby, staring into space. He desperately hoped that she would not burst into tears again.

He walked over to her. "Let's go. The car is waiting."

Her eyes were a bit puffy, and she looked haggard, but otherwise she seemed fine.

"I'll carry my own bag." She got up and stretched out her hand.

He ignored her. "Do'ahou," he muttered, walking towards the exit.

They traveled back in the car in silence. On one hand, he was relieved that she had given up on making conversation after that disastrous breakfast. On the other, the fact that she made no attempt at all was slightly unnerving. She merely stared out the window.

He dozed off at some point, and was only roused when they had arrived at their destination – his new house.

The butler was waiting by the front porch. As they got out of the car, he bowed respectfully. "Young Master. Miss Yanagi."

Kaede frowned. "There aren't supposed to be any servants in this house."

"No servants?" Yanagi sounded surprised. _She_ _must be used to having servants. _Truth be told, so was he – but having so many of them around had always made him feel uncomfortable. He much preferred to live alone; it was one of the reasons why he had been so keen on moving out. Of course, he wouldn't really be alone with another person around the house, but it was still an improvement.

"We're just here to help you settle in," the butler assured him. "Your belongings have already been moved into the house and unpacked. I'll show you around."

Yanagi looked at him skeptically. "No servants?" she whispered again.

The two of them trailed behind the butler as he showed them around. It was a rather small house by the standards they were familiar with. The biggest room in the house – the master bedroom – was upstairs, along with a modest guest room. The kitchen, dining, and living areas were downstairs. The décor was very simple and pared back, just the way he liked it. Kaede saw that the servants had arranged Yanagi's things in the master bedroom. _We'll need to change that._

When they were done with the house tour, the butler led them out to the back. There was a half-court on one side, and a swimming pool and barbeque area on the other.

Yanagi's face lit up. "We can have a housewarming party," she said excitedly and nudged him. "Invite your friends so I can meet them."

It was the dumbest suggestion he ever heard. Rukawa Kaede? Throwing a party? Even the butler seemed to think so, suppressing a chuckle. _Stupid old man._

"Invite your own friends."

She scowled at him. "I already told you I have no friends here. Just invite yours."

"What makes you think I have any?"

She smacked her forehead in mock realization. "Of course, I should've known. You're such an ass, nobody would want to be friends with you."

"You did."

"Well I take it back." She studied him for a few moments. "What about the basketball team?"

"They're not my friends."

"Don't be such a spoilsport!"

He ignored her and turned to the butler. "Are we done here?"

"Yes, Young Master. If there's anything you need, just give us a call." The butler bowed and retreated.

They went back inside the house and up the stairs. "We need to move your things out of my room," he said.

"Your room?"

"That's right. You can sleep in the guest room."

She looked on in disbelief as he chucked out her belongings one by one from the master bedroom. He wondered why. Surely she wasn't expecting to get the master bedroom? It was his house, after all.

He surveyed the scene when he was done. Her things were strewn around the floor outside the room, but already the room looked less cluttered. That was good. As for Yanagi herself, she sat on the floor with her knees drawn up against her chest, staring dejectedly into space. Kaede felt a little sorry for her, but he didn't see how this could have been avoided. _Well, too late to think about it now._

"Hey," he offered tentatively, but she gave no sign that she heard him. "Let me know if I missed..."

At that moment she let out a frustrated cry and pat her cheeks with both hands, as if to snap herself out of her reverie.

"anything." He finished in surprise.

She plastered on a big smile and turned to him. "It's almost lunchtime. Shall we go out for lunch? I'll pack up here later."

He blinked. It seemed she was more resilient than he thought. "I'm going to take a nap." He closed the door on her, relieved to be alone at last. Having to tiptoe around that girl's feelings took more out of him than a game of basketball. At least the latter came naturally to him. He looked around the room. It looked much neater after throwing out Yanagi's things – the nightstands and shelves had been so cluttered before. Now there were just his various basketball trophies next to a photo of his mother.

Exhausted, he flopped down onto the huge bed and fell almost instantly asleep.

* * *

_Don't cry, don't cry…_ Yanagi told herself over and over. She looked at all her things strewn so carelessly on the floor, things that were important to her – photos of her brother and family, soft toys and little trinkets given to her by her friends… all the people who loved her were so far away now.

Her eyes grew moist at the thought and she hurriedly blinked the tears away. That little episode earlier at breakfast was embarrassing enough. She would not be caught crying again.

Steeling herself, she picked up her things and moved them one by one into the guest room. The room was much smaller than she was used to, but it was cozy. At the very least, it would be her sanctuary in this house. When she was done, the room looked much more welcoming than it did before. She smiled to herself, pleased.

By this time her stomach was rumbling noisily, demanding food. She glared at Kaede's door across the hall and made a face. The boy was good looking, yes, but he was also the rudest person she had ever met. _And now I'm stuck with him for life._ She sighed and quickly put that thought out of her mind. She was going to do her best to build a happy life here in spite of him. It was that or be miserable all her life, and she refused to resign herself to that.

But first, lunch. She hated eating alone, but with someone like Kaede, it seemed like she would just have to get used to it.

She found herself in a crowded shopping mall an hour later, having caught a bus downtown. As she walked around by herself, it was hard not to notice that everyone else was there with someone. Being alone was intimidating, but being alone among people was something else. She decided that she would have to learn how to cook, so she could just eat at home.

For now, though, she just wanted a quiet place to dine and go. She entered the first restaurant that fit the bill – an expensive-looking Italian restaurant that did not have too many diners.

"Table for one, please." She meekly held up a finger, embarrassed. She was probably the only one eating alone.

The waitress smiled and nodded. "This way please."

She followed the waitress to her seat, keeping her head down to avoid eye contact with anyone.

"The soup of the day is mushroom. Please let me know when you're ready to order."

"I'll just order now," she said hurriedly before the waitress left, wanting to eat and get home quickly. "One house salad, please."

When the waitress had left, Yanagi surveyed the restaurant. It was quite empty except for herself and a few couples, all of whom seemed to be having a good time. One couple in particular caught her eye; they were seated diagonally from her, with the man facing her. She watched them, unable to tear her eyes away. They were chatting and laughing, and seemed so in love. The man looked at his partner like like she was the only girl in the world. Yanagi always dreamed of having someone who would look at her that way.

It helped, of course, that the man was devastatingly handsome despite his ridiculous spiky hair. Her mind was wandering when he suddenly caught her gaze. She looked away quickly, but not before he gave her a knowing smile. Her cheeks felt hot. She did not dare look at him for the remainder of dinner and left as quickly as she could.

* * *

**_A/N: Thank you for reading this far and please review! I would love to hear any feedback._**


	3. A Puzzle

As he made his way downstairs with a basketball tucked in his arm, Rukawa Kaede felt _great_. Not as great as when he had made it to the Interscholastics for the third year running, sure, but it was pretty damned close.

He liked this house. It was small, empty of people, and more importantly, empty of the memories that had tormented him for most of his life.

_Hold that thought._

The unmistakable aroma of sizzling bacon wafted to his nostrils, reminding him that there was one other occupant in the house. He had skipped dinner the previous night, so his stomach now rumbled against his will.

"Do you always wake up this late?" Yanagi emerged from the kitchen with two plates in hand. She was in running attire, with her hair tied up in a ponytail. He looked at the clock; it was 9am. "I just got back from my run. Are you heading out?"

She set the plates of food down on the dining table. "Have some breakfast before you go."

As much as he was loath to interact with his housemate anymore than necessary, the temptation of a hot meal proved too great. He grunted and took his seat at the dining table, setting his basketball aside.

"Oh, and it's my first time cooking," she said, before he was about to start. "You should be honoured."

He looked skeptically at the plate before him. A few strips of bacon and some scrambled eggs. They looked all right, though the bacon _did_ look a little burnt…

"Go on, try it!" She urged.

He took a few tentative bites out of the scrambled eggs. It was totally tasteless. Of course, that airheaded brat wouldn't know how to cook. She probably had servants doing everything for her before, and never bothered to learn. _So did you_, a small voice reminded him.

"Well?" Her voice was slightly anxious.

He was about to tell her to try it herself, but he saw that her plate consisted only of fruits. _Did she cook this just for me? That idiot._ The thought made him extremely uncomfortable. Even though the food was bad, he had done nothing to warrant this… generosity, and it was certainly not welcome. He pushed the plate away and picked up his basketball. "Don't bother next time."

Yanagi scowled at him and tried the eggs for herself. "It just needs some salt!" she called as he made his way towards the front door. "Hey!"

* * *

_Someone's in the gym on a Sunday?_ He parked his bicycle and entered just in time to see Sendoh land a dunk.

"Sugoi, Akira-kun!" A girl leapt up excitedly from the bench to clap. Sendoh flashed her his trademark sleazy smile and walked towards her.

_Showing off in front of a girl? Do'ahou…_ Kaede cleared his throat and both parties jumped.

"Rukawa?" Sendoh sounded surprised. "Shouldn't you be on honeymoon or something?"

Kaede did not know how to reply, so he ignored the question. "Play a game with me."

"Ah… but the last time we played one-on-one, we were tied until dusk."

"I'll beat you before that… this time."

Sendoh's eyes flashed dangerously at the challenge. "Is that so?" His lips curled into a confident smirk. "Yuki-chan, please wait awhile."

* * *

The aces were still fiercely at it two hours later. Echoing their last one-on-one encounter, neither managed to score consecutive baskets.

Finally, Sendoh called for a timeout and surveyed the empty gym. "You got me into trouble, Rukawa."

Rukawa, still full of adrenalin from the intense competition, was eager to continue the match. He followed Sendoh's gaze around the gym but could not see what he meant. As with most things he did not understand, he chose to ignore it. "Let's continue."

Sendoh shook his head and smiled sheepishly. "I completely forgot the time. Sorry, but I've got to go after someone."

_The girl…? _So, the great Sendoh Akira was just another skirt-chaser like the rest of the lowlifes. He felt a flicker of disappointment. He didn't like to admit it, but he had long held a grudging respect for the former Ryonan ace. He had always assumed that Sendoh was as single-minded about basketball as he was – a kindred spirit – but clearly this was not the case.

"Ja!" Sendoh waved as he exited the gym. "We'll continue this some other time."

* * *

When he returned a few hours later, Yanagi was sitting earnestly in front of the TV taking notes. "Hey," she greeted absent-mindedly without looking away. He turned to see what she was watching. _A cooking programme?_ _Is she seriously going to try again?_

Clutching his stomach, he headed straight for the kitchen, famished after the physical exertion. He also realised the last time he ate was lunch the previous day. Perhaps he should have eaten more of that breakfast, bad as it was.

"Are you cooking something?"

He held up the packet of instant ramen in his hand. "That's really bad for you," she said disapprovingly.

"I don't care." This was probably the first time he'd gone without food for such a long time, and his stomach was feeling a little uncomfortable. The servants always made sure there was something ready to eat.

The ramen was ready in less than five minutes. To his great disappointment, Yanagi decided to join him at the table with an apple in hand. He'd thought she should have learned to leave him alone by now. He focused intently on slurping down his noodles, refusing to acknowledge her presence.

"What do you usually do on weekends?" She asked, with a mouthful of apple. As usual, she decided to continue when he did not reply. "I used to go shopping or watch movies with my friends. Ne, Kaede-kun, shall we go watch a movie tonight?"

_A movie?_ He could not remember the last time he went to the cinema. Probably with his brother, when he was much younger. He might have fallen asleep during the movie.

"Shall we?" Damn it, she was persistent. Her eyes were bright with hope.

He gulped down the last of the ramen. "I don't like movies."

"But I'm so bored." She sighed dramatically and followed him into the kitchen, where he washed up the dishes.

"Can we go on a little trip next weekend, then?" She pinched her thumb and index finger together, emphasizing _leetle_. "Just a little one. We can take the train up to Tokyo." Again, she wore that same hopeful expression on her face.

He sighed. He did not enjoy trampling all over her hopes, but like all the girls throughout middle and high school, she was just asking for it. He shut off the tap and set the pot down to dry, then turned to her icily. "Go away. You're annoying me."

He was painfully familiar with this routine. This was the girl's cue to either flee the scene in tears, slap him across the face, or stammer out a 'S-orr-ry'.

To his mild surprise, she did not flinch, and so they merely stared at each other. Her big brown eyes were probing him, studying him, but he knew that his face betrayed nothing. "You're a puzzle, Rukawa Kaede."

"What?"

She smiled enigmatically. "Nothing."

* * *

Yanagi wandered around the building, lost. She was sure she was in the right building – the sign said School of Business and Law – but Lecture Hall 2.1 was nowhere to be found. She scanned her timetable again, but it yielded nothing new.

Frantic, she looked around for someone she could ask, but the corridors were deserted. Everyone would be in class at this time – she glanced at her watch anxiously – she was already 15 minutes late for her first class and the hands kept ticking.

She put the blame squarely on Rukawa Kaede for her predicament. The idiot boy had cycled off to school on his own, leaving Yanagi to navigate the unfamiliar public bus routes by herself.

"Are you lost?"

The voice was like an answered prayer. "Yes! I – " She spun around, but the words caught in her throat. It was the spiky hair that jolted her memory. _The guy from the restaurant._ Warmth crept up her cheeks. She hoped he didn't remember her. _Of course he doesn't remember you, silly._

He took the timetable from her hand. "Lecture Hall 2.1 is in the other wing." He smiled. "I'm headed there too. All the Law lectures are usually there. This is the Business wing."

"Thank you," she managed weakly, looking down at her shoes.

They walked and chatted along the way, and when he made no mention of that embarrassing encounter at the restaurant, she relaxed. Of course, he must be used to attracting stares from girls all the time. He was about as tall as Kaede with the same athletic build, but the similarities ended there. His eyes were kind and friendly, and his warm personality could put anyone at ease. She learned that he studied Law too, but he was 1 year her senior.

Even though she was already 25 minutes late by this time, she felt a twinge of regret when they reached her lecture hall. He was the first person that had been nice to her since she moved to Kanagawa, and she enjoyed talking to someone who actually responded. _That's because your social circle currently consists of only one Rukawa Kaede,_ she thought sourly.

"I guess this is me." She bowed gratefully. "Thank you, senpai!"

"At your service." He grinned and gave her a mock salute. It was only after entering the hall that she realised she didn't get his name.

The rest of the morning went by uneventfully, and she decided she would go check out the cafeteria before her next class. The corridors were now congested with students and noisy chatter. When she heard the topic on everyone's lips, however…

"_Rukawa-kun? Married?!"_

"_I heard it from a friend of someone on the basketball team…"_

"_Who's the lucky girl? I'm so jealous!"_

"_She must be really beautiful to be good enough for him!"_

With every passing remark, she felt like shrinking into herself more and more, in case someone identified her as the "lucky girl". Sure, Kaede was good looking, but she did not expect him to be something like a celebrity. How could he be so popular with a personality like that?

Suddenly, she didn't feel like going to the cafeteria anymore. She just wanted to get away from the crowd. Pushing her way to the nearest staircase, she ran up the flights of stairs all the way to the top. She paused for a moment to catch her breath before opening the door to the rooftop… where an awfully familiar mop-head was taking a nap.

_Is that…? You must be kidding me._

She went up to examine him. He was using his bag as a pillow and seemed to be soundly asleep, with drool running down his chin. She decided she liked him better this way. He looked softer and more innocent, almost angelic. She suddenly had a wild impulse to run her fingers through his hair, but stopped herself. _Everyone looks angelic when they're sleeping,_ she reminded herself.

Carefully, she sat down next to him and thought about what she had overheard. If she interpreted it correctly, it meant that this imbecile could have had any girl he wanted. Instead, he was forced to marry her. Was that why he treated her so coldly?

A sudden crippling wave of self-doubt washed over her. She had no beauty and no talent, was it any wonder he disliked her? All she had was family money, which he also had in spades. Just thinking about it was depressing.

_Have to think positive… think positive…_

* * *

_Ah shit… am I late for practice?_ Kaede sat up and rubbed his eyes. The sun was still up. That was good.

He was about to stand when he saw a pink lunchbox on the floor. There was a note stuck on it: "Try it! – Y."

He sighed. Another one of her culinary experiments? Inside the lunchbox was probably the most unappealing sandwich he had ever seen – wholegrain, with nothing but cucumbers and tomatoes in the middle. She had obviously made this for herself… no way he was going to eat _that_. He put the lunchbox in his bag and headed immediately to the gym.


	4. Family

_**rukiruki86: Thanks for the review, good to know someone out there is reading :) **_

* * *

Kaede strode through the gym doors, just in time to see Koshino attempt a three-point shot. _Perfect form. _The ball swished cleanly through the net.

Despite his height disadvantage, the former Ryonan guard had earned a starting place on the Seikei team due to his near-perfect shooting percentage. Somewhere between high school and college, he had greatly improved that aspect of his game to rival even Jin, though Kaede had yet to see it in an official game.

"Ah, Rukawa. You're early."

Kaede nodded curtly in reply and headed straight for the locker room to get changed. Maki arrived next, followed by the team's imposing centre and vice-captain, Eda. One by one, the other members of the team started streaming in.

"Guys! Announcement!" Masumi, the Seikei team manager, burst in excitedly. The bookish-looking girl scanned the gym, pushing up her glasses. "Is Sendoh-kun late again?"

Maki sighed. "It seems so."

As if on cue, Sendoh strolled in casually, wearing his trademark smile. "Hey guys."

She frowned at him. "Right. Come here." The players went over to Masumi, whispering in excitement. The tournament season would be starting soon and a practice match before that was customary. As reigning champions, Seikei would be automatically entered into the semifinals while the rest of the universities battled for the remaining three spots.

"We'll be playing Todai University this Saturday, here, in a practice match," she announced without preamble. The murmurs rose. Todai University had ranked 3rd in Tokyo last year, narrowly missing a place in the Nationals.

Though his cool exterior showed no sign of it, Kaede was fired up at the prospect of his first college match. It had been too long since his last organized game and he longed to get back into it. He lived for competition.

"Thank you, Masumi-san." Maki turned to address the team. "Even though it's just a practice match, let's start the season right and remind them why we're the champions. Now give me 20 laps around the court!"

* * *

With the practice match looming, Maki put them through the paces harder than usual. After two hours, even Kaede had to admit he was tired.

"We'll take a five-minute break here," Maki announced. "When we get back, we'll scrimmage."

"Roger that!"

Exhausted, Kaede sank onto the benches and drank deeply from his water bottle. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see that Sendoh was already making good use of his break time to chat up one of the many fan girls that had come to watch their practice. His reputation as a playboy and a flirt was truly well deserved. _Do'ahou…_

If he had his way, he would make sure to lock the gym doors for every practice. That was the only way to keep out annoying distractions. In fact, he could think of a number of other rules he would like to institute…

Sendoh broke his train of thought. "Hey, Rukawa. Why didn't you invite us to your housewarming party?"

…_What?!_

Kaede turned with dread. Beside Sendoh was Yanagi, smiling down at him innocently. _That brat!_ He was fuming, but his voice was quiet and controlled. "A word, please."

"Oh, I wouldn't want to disturb your practice – "

He walked over and grabbed her wrist, dragging her away from a bewildered Sendoh. "I wasn't asking."

"Undo it." He said when they were out of earshot.

"What?"

"Whatever you just did." The grip on her wrist tightened and she let out a yelp. Realising they were still in contact, Kaede immediately dropped her wrist like it was the plague.

She stared at him defiantly. "You said I could invite my own friends."

"Sendoh?" He asked, barely concealing his disdain. "Are you that kind of girl?"

Her eyes widened, taken aback by his loaded question. "What are you implying?"

As socially inept as he was, he knew instinctively that saying any more would be going overboard. And so, with great effort, he managed to hold his tongue. _What a gentleman I am_, he thought dryly.

"Break over!" Maki called from a distance. _Saved by the bell._

He held up a warning finger. "Have your party, but don't expect me to show up."

He turned to walk away, but paused after a few steps and looked back over his shoulder. She was still standing there, as if rooted to the ground. "And your sandwich looked disgusting."

* * *

Yanagi stood at the same spot for a few moments just glaring at his retreating figure, clenching her fists in a mixture of hurt and rage. _Was he going to call me a…_

She had known since their first encounter that Rukawa Kaede was far from nice. That boy was like a porcupine; you got pricked anytime you got too close. It was just how he was. She had seen that, and resolved to be strong. _Words cannot hurt me_, she had told herself. _He doesn't really mean it._ But at that moment, she found herself struggling to believe it.

She was so consumed by anger that she did not notice Sendoh walking up to her. "Are you all right?" he asked, waving his hand in front of her face.

She nearly jumped. "S-senpai!"

He tilted his head, smiling. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Is that so?" She laughed nervously, trying to pretend that everything was fine. _I would much rather see a ghost than Rukawa Kaede_, she thought angrily.

"I just wanted to let you know that we'll swing by after the match this Saturday. Me, and some of the guys."

"SENDOH! GET OVER HERE!" roared Maki.

"Ah – I'd better get going," he smiled sheepishly, already backpedalling away. "Thanks again for the invite!"

As he retreated, she let out a deep sigh. She'd thought that a housewarming party would be a good occasion to get that stupid boy to socialize. It was so silly that he spent so much time with his teammates but could not count a friend among them.

Not for the first time in her life, she cursed herself for being so meddlesome. Glancing at the court, she saw the scrimmage had already begun. She would have stayed to watch, but unfortunately parties did not plan themselves.

* * *

Not one to go soft, Maki had called for a 5-on-5 full court scrimmage. When the final whistle blew, most of the team collapsed on the court in exhaustion. Kaede was worn out as well, but he didn't quite feel like going home. He wasn't sure why.

He walked up to Maki. "Captain. Could I have a set of gym keys?"

"Staying back?"

He nodded, wiping perspiration off his brow.

Maki studied him with mild interest. Not many players could take that kind of training he had just dished out, and for them to stay back afterwards was unheard of.

"Don't push yourself too hard," Maki lectured, handing him the keys. "I want you fresh for your debut."

Kaede merely nodded again, taking the keys. He looked at the clock. 7pm. Plenty of time for a one-on-one.

He walked over to the benches, where Sendoh was lying with a towel over his face. "Sendoh. A game?"

Sendoh peeled the towel off. "You're staying on?"

Kaede felt inexplicably triumphant at hearing the surprise in his voice. _I have more stamina than you think._ "Yeah."

Sendoh glanced at the clock. "Damn. I was supposed to meet my girlfriend an hour ago."

"Do you care?"

He shrugged, sitting up. "Isn't Yanagi-san waiting for you at home?"

Hearing her name made Kaede think back to their earlier encounter, and that made him extremely uncomfortable. It felt like… guilt? _I didn't do anything wrong_, he thought stubbornly. _She started it._

"It's fine if you don't want to," Kaede said coolly, sidestepping the question.

"Yeah, sorry. I should get home."

One by one, the team trickled out until only Kaede was left.

An hour later, the gym was silent except for the sound of his casual dribbling. _Todai University, eh?_ He burst forward from the half-court line, performing a series of crossovers to outmaneuver his imaginary opponents. He then jumped, lobbing the ball towards the backboard before landing. In a split second he had leapt up again, reaching for the rebound and dunking it in.

_Satisfaction. _He let go of the rim and stumbled backwards. _Damn, I'm so tired…_

He allowed himself to fall. Lying sprawled out on the empty court, he could feel his pulse racing, hear his heart pounding in his ears. He closed his eyes, savoring the sensation. _This is life._ It would not be too long before exhaustion overcame him, he knew that. His life was a cycle of pushing himself, pushing his body until it could no longer take it, then falling into deep sleep to recover. The things in between did not matter.

_The best… I want to be the best._ This was the thought he kept foremost in his mind as sleep claimed him.

* * *

Yanagi turned off the TV and checked the clock with worry. It was already close to midnight and that boy was still not home. She hadn't completely forgiven him for earlier, but all that seemed very distant and trivial next to the grim scenarios she was playing out in her mind.

Kaede, blood pooling around his head, his bicycle just a twisted mass of metal.

Kaede, mugged and left to bleed out in a dark alley.

She shook the images out of her head. _He's probably still at the gym shooting hoops._ But the nagging feeling refused to leave her.

Sighing in resignation, she made up her mind to go check the school gym. Just to be sure. _He'll probably tell me to go away again_, she thought glumly.

The public buses had stopped running by this time, and she was without a car or bike.

She would have to walk it.

* * *

Kaede felt a splash of cool water on his face. That felt strangely good. It was very warm in here. _Where am I…?_

"Hey!" A voice called out to him. Whoever it was sounded agitated. "Do you know what time it is? Wake up!"

He shut his eyes tighter. _Don't want to…_

Someone was touching his face and neck. He wanted to tell them to go away, but the energy would not come.

"Oi, you have to wake up." The voice was softer now. That was good. It was very irritating before. "Please. I can't carry you all the way back."

He was then assaulted with a towel, dabbing away the water on his face.

"Don't… touch me." He managed, weakly pushing the towel away.

"How are you feeling?"

He opened his eyes, grunting with effort. Everything seemed hazy. He rubbed his eyes. Yanagi stared back at him, a look of concern on her face.

"What time…?" He asked, breaking into a yawn.

The concern on her face was rapidly replaced with disgust.

"It's 1am!" She barked, throwing the towel on his head. "How could you just fall asleep in the gym? Are you a moron?"

He sat up, annoyed. "It's none of your business where I sleep."

She bit back a retort and closed her eyes, taking a few deep breaths. "I'm not here to bicker," she said levelly. "You have a fever. Can you cycle home?"

_A fever?_ He did feel slightly warm, his whole body ached, and he was starving. But cycling home probably wasn't an issue. "Yeah."

"Can I ride with you?"

Something suddenly dawned on him. _1am?_ He glanced at the gym clock for confirmation, eyes widening. _Did she… alone? After midnight?_

"You walked here?" he asked quietly.

Her cheeks turned crimson and she looked away hurriedly. "I... I thought something might have happened." She shot him a furious glare. "Looks like I shouldn't have bothered."

He knew what the correct response should be – to feel grateful, or even touched – but he could not find it in himself. It was as if such feelings had been out of use for so long, they had wasted away, much like muscles that had atrophied.

Instead, he felt anger rising underneath his cool façade. The girl was a total idiot. "Do'ahou."

"What?"

"Have you no sense of self-preservation?" he asked coldly. "I can take care of myself. Nobody asked you to come."

She stared at him in disbelief. "You're right. I was a fool to come here." She picked up her bag and stalked towards the exit.

"Hey," he called, but she did not stop. Cursing under his breath, he ran to get his gym bag from the locker room and hurried out of the gym. It wasn't safe for a girl to be out on the streets alone at this time of night. If anything happened to her, his father would kill him. _I shouldn't have provoked her._ "Hey!"

_Damn it, have to lock up._

He shut the double doors and fumbled around for the keys. She was already out of sight. _That idiot…_

Once the doors were securely locked, he went over to his bike and unchained it. His bike had no pillion; it was just one of those things he never thought he would need. He mounted his bike and pedaled. Since she was on foot, he could still catch up to her, no problem.

True enough, he soon spied her from a distance. He gradually slowed his speed until he was alongside her and hopped off his bike.

She paused to glare at him. "What do you want?"

"My bike has no pillion."

She turned away haughtily. "I can walk by myself."

"Don't be an idiot."

Surprisingly, her expression softened. "Are you… worried about me?" A cheeky smile spread across her face, illuminated softly by the orange glow of a street lamp.

Kaede had never realised it before, but in that instant, she looked beautiful. Her big brown eyes were filled with warmth and life, and even though her cheeks looked slightly chubby when she smiled, it only enhanced her innocent appeal. _The fever must be turning me dotty_, he thought wryly.

"Don't be an idiot," he repeated. "Let's go home."

Her eyes twinkled with mischief. "I'll race you."

"What?"

"One… two…"

Kaede frowned at the unfairness of the challenge. He was exhausted after training, and there was still his bike he needed to drag along. "I'm not playing along with your nonsense."

"Three!" She sprinted off.

Sighing, he hopped back on his bike and pedaled leisurely behind her.

* * *

_She has good stamina,_ he noted as he parked his bike outside of their house. She had run for half an hour without letting up, which was pretty good for a girl, he supposed.

"I'm so tired," she complained as he entered the house.

"Do'ahou. Nobody asked you to run back."

"I enjoyed it." She smiled, panting. "You must run with me sometime." For the second time that night, it occurred to him that she looked nice when she smiled. _Must be the fever._

She tiptoed and pressed the back of her hand onto his forehead. He brushed it away in annoyance.

"Have you eaten?"

He shook his head and removed his shoes.

"I'll make you something."

He remembered the tasteless breakfast and horrible sandwich. "I'm fine, thanks."

"Shut up and sit down," she ordered bossily. "Even I can cook instant ramen."

With no energy left to protest, he obeyed meekly. The ramen was ready five minutes later. "Eat up, then take this," she said, placing two pills and a glass of water on the table.

He attacked the ramen voraciously, finishing it in minutes.

"The medicine," she reminded him from across the table. Sighing, he popped the pills in his mouth and washed them down quickly. "Good boy." She sounded very pleased. "I think I like you better when you're sick."

She stood up before he could bristle at her remark. "I'll wash up," she offered, taking the pot and glass into the kitchen. "You should get some rest."

He trailed behind her, deep in thought. Something had been bugging him all day, but he had just gotten a sense of what it could be. "On the rooftop…"

She blushed furiously. "I- I didn't know you would be there," she said defensively. "I just wanted to get some fresh air."

He waved her excuses away. "I don't care about that."

"Then?"

He paused, trying to piece his thoughts together coherently. "That… you made that for yourself."

She frowned at him, puzzled. "You mean the sandwich? I know you didn't eat it. Just throw it away."

"Then what did you eat?"

Her eyes widened a little before she broke into a nervous laugh. "You're not making any sense right now, Rukawa Kaede. Go to bed."

He frowned. He could have sworn… was he reading too much into it? Perhaps the fever was messing with his head again.

She scrunched up her face. "Go away," she said, in a comical impersonation of him. "You're annoying me." Chuckling at her own joke, she turned towards the sink.

He gave her a last skeptical look before abandoning the topic. "Oi, do'ahou."

"Hmm?" She set the pot to dry and turned to him.

"I practice late all the time," he said coolly. "No need to wait up."

She gazed at him for a few moments before breaking into a small smile. "I'm happy to."

He stared at her blankly as a strange warmth stirred from the pit of his stomach. _Is this how it feels like…?_ _To have a family?_

He realised he must look like a fool, just standing there and staring. "Goodnight," he blurted, and abruptly left the kitchen.


	5. Time, the Great Thief

**Author's Note: Thank you all so much for the reviews! They are much appreciated.**

**This chapter is much longer than usual so I hope you bear with me. It features the first Sendoh POV as well as some (limited) basketball action. It took so long to write, write, and re-write, but I am pretty happy with the way it turned out. I truly hope you enjoy reading and do leave a review!**

* * *

Sendoh Akira was not a morning person. He had never been on time for a morning class, ever, but fortunately for him, he could smile his way out of – and into – anything.

He didn't feel like smiling today, though.

He wanted to get away, to go fishing alone and clear his head, but school and basketball demanded otherwise. And so, he found himself jogging in the park at an ungodly hour. Not that he really knew what time it was – time was an abstract concept that uptight people preoccupied themselves with – but there was dew on the grass and the air was crisper than he was used to.

She left him more than three years ago, on just such a beautiful morning. He was never quite the same after that, for better or for worse. _Japanese Model Weds Son of Broadcasting Tycoon in Paris_, read yesterday's newspaper headline. He closed his eyes and tried to shut it out of his mind. After her there had been girls aplenty: some of whom he dated seriously for a few months, others he just bedded and ditched. Each girl was a challenge that, once won, he grew bored with and tossed aside.

_I'll have to break up with Yuki-chan soon_. He winced, imagining her reaction. She was a fiery one.

A hesitant voice brought him back to the more idyllic present. "Sendoh senpai?" He recognized the girl as Rukawa's wife – though it was still odd to think of the guy as married.

"Ohaiyo, Yanagi-san!" The cheeriness in his own voice irked him. He felt anything but cheery.

She smiled brightly in return and he did a quick mental appraisal. She had a sweet, girl-next-door look about her with a hint of baby fat still on her cheeks – the type of girl you were more likely to bring home to mom than to bed. Perhaps a 7/10 if he was being generous. Honestly, he thought Rukawa could have done better – an 8 or 9, at least. The rookie was a girl magnet, though he never understood why.

"Do you come here to run often?" She asked as the two of them started up again, jogging side by side.

"Not at all," he confessed. "I'm not usually awake before 9."

"But… don't most classes start at 9?"

"Yeah," he grinned sheepishly. "I'm not exactly a model student."

She laughed. "So what brings you here this morning?"

"I had a feeling I'd meet a beautiful girl here." The glib lie rolled smoothly off his tongue before he remembered which girl he was speaking to. _Rukawa's. Wife. _He mentally kicked himself. These things just came a little _too _naturally to him. If Rukawa found out he was flirting with his wife…

"You probably will, there are a few pretty girls who come jogging here in the morning," she said with a wistful smile. "You should come here more often."

He blinked in surprise before letting out a hearty laugh, realizing that his little attempt at flirtation had sailed right past her.

"What's so funny?"

_God, she's dense._ He stifled another chuckle. He had not expected to be able to laugh today. It was turning out to be not such a bad day, after all. "Nothing."

"Is there something on my face?" She asked, mortified. She stopped running and wiped her face with one hand. "Is it gone?"

He forced himself to keep a straight face and drew closer to her, bending down a little so that their faces almost touched. "Here, let me get it for you." She went red as a tomato and stared at the ground, studiously avoiding his gaze. He ran a thumb gently over her cheek and she flinched a little, as though his touch burned her. He found that very amusing. "There, all gone."

"What was it?" She finally dared to look back up at him, looking embarrassed and a little frightened.

He suddenly had a wild impulse to give her a small peck on the forehead, just to assure her that everything was all right. _Not this one_, he reminded himself. _She's out of bounds._ Instead, he smiled and straightened up. "Just a little leaf. Nothing to worry about." His mind raced for something else to talk about, before he could be tempted to do something foolish again. "Ah, are you coming to the match tomorrow?"

"Probably not. I might need to buy some things for the party."

"Oh? I'm sure Rukawa could use your support. It's his first college game."

"I don't think he needs anyone's support," she said doubtfully. "Is he as good as they say?"

"Wait a minute. You've never seen him play?" Akira had figured that the only way Rukawa could make girls fall for him was by impressing them on the court. After all, it was not like the guy had any personality to speak of.

She shook her head. "He's that good, huh?"

"Yeah, but I'm better." His matter-of-fact tone took her by surprise. "You should come judge for yourself," he added, a half-smirk on his lips.

She laughed politely. "Maybe next time."

They jogged up a slope in silence. "I hope you don't mind me asking, senpai," Yanagi began hesitantly when they reached even ground. "But don't you have a girlfriend?"

Akira looked at her curiously. Girls only asked him that question when they were interested to pursue him. "Why do you ask that?"

"Ah, I'm sorry," she replied quickly, reddening. "I shouldn't have asked."

He smiled at her reassuringly. "It's fine." He paused, trying to find a way to explain his current relationship status without making himself sound like a douchebag. '_We've been together for a month but I'm already bored and want to break up?' No, too honest… let's go with something vague._ "I've been seeing someone, but it's not really working out." he sighed dramatically and put on his best 'sad puppy' face. "I really liked her..."

"Oh, I'm – I'm sorry to hear that," she stammered. "I just wondered… since you wanted to meet pretty girls here…" she trailed off awkwardly, mentally kicking herself for being such a big mouth. The truth was, she had remembered the first time she saw him at the restaurant with a girl. He looked so devoted and in love, and this was at odds with his earlier remark about meeting girls. "I didn't mean to upset you."

He laughed lightly. "Don't worry. You can make it up to me by sending your pretty friends my way."

"Well, I don't know many people here, but I'll do my best," she replied with a grin.

"You're not from here?"

She shook her head. "I just moved here from Kyoto."

"Oh?" he raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Then… how did you and Rukawa meet?"

"Ah…" It was Yanagi's turn to rack her brain for a suitable way to phrase her response. "We met at a wedding," she said slowly, before letting out a small laugh. "I remember thinking he was full of it."

"He _is_ full of it," Akira corrected, laughing along with her.

They slowed to a walk as they approached the park exit. "Senpai," she turned to him, a sincere and encouraging smile on her face. "I'm sure your soulmate is out there somewhere."

He smiled wryly. "I'm not sure I believe in soulmates, but thanks."

"Why not?"

_Why not?_ He wasn't sure where to begin. It was an innocent question, but to answer it would probably have taken more time and effort than he could be bothered to spare. Instead, he settled on a response that revealed nothing, and the smile never left his face. "Only girls believe in such things."

She laughed. "Alright, Mr. Tough Guy. I'd better get going. See you tomorrow?"

"See you," he said with a nod.

"Good luck for the game!" She waved and jogged away.

Sendoh Akira was still not a morning person, but perhaps, just perhaps… the morning had not been so bad.

* * *

After snoozing his way through three lectures, Kaede headed to the gym as usual. There was still half an hour to go before practice officially began, but quite a few members of the team were already warming up. In a corner of the gym, Koshino was discussing something animatedly with Masumi, the manager. The shooting guard seemed very worried about something while Masumi's eyes were wide as saucers. _Probably gossiping like housewives,_ Kaede thought disapprovingly as he went to change. Their practice match was tomorrow, and maintaining focus was vital.

Since the night Yanagi had found him in the gym, he had been staying late every evening to practice and rarely saw her except for brief moments at home, when she waited up for him. He didn't understand why she did that. He was usually too exhausted to say anything to her, and the both of them would just retire to their rooms after exchanging meaningless pleasantries. He couldn't deny, though, that it felt good knowing someone was waiting for him. Like he meant something to someone.

_Then again, I could have just gotten a dog,_ he mused.

The remainder of the team trickled in with Sendoh the last to come, of course. It seemed like it was going to be another routine practice session when the gym doors opened midway through.

"S-Sensei!" Activity in the gym came to a screeching halt as the coach made his entrance.

"Saitoh Sensei." Maki bowed respectfully.

Even though he was already in his 60s, Coach Saitoh still inspired fear among the team. His tanned, gruff face was all hard lines that brooked no nonsense, very unlike the kindly Anzai that Kaede was used to. His cold gaze swept over the gym before settling on Maki.

"Maki. Come with me." Saitoh motioned to his captain and walked briskly towards the locker room without so much as a nod to the other players.

"Hai, Sensei." Maki turned to the rest of the team. "What are you slackers doing? Continue practicing!"

The two men entered the locker room and closed the door. Kaede pointed in their direction. "What's going on?"

Koshino shrugged. "Probably discussing the lineup for tomorrow."

"Frightening guy, isn't he?" Sendoh chimed in.

"That's only because you keep getting on his bad side, Sendoh." Koshino grinned and turned to Kaede. "He's no Anzai, that's for sure."

As Sendoh stared at the locker room door, Kaede thought he detected a faint bitterness in his eyes. _Well, this is interesting._ Sendoh had been the undisputed ace of Ryonan High, and everyone knew Coach Taoka went to great lengths to accommodate his star player's ego and tardiness. Perhaps Saitoh wasn't as tolerant.

They continued with their practice until Maki stepped out. "Rukawa, you're wanted."

The team, Kaede included, looked up in surprise.

"Hai," He acknowledged, wondering what the Coach wanted with him.

"Close the door," Coach Saitoh instructed as he entered. He did as he was told, and bowed slightly. Saitoh appraised him silently. _That gaze… it's intense._ But Kaede did not flinch.

"Tell me, Rukawa. Do you think you're a good player?"

The directness of the question surprised him, but he replied without hesitation. "Yes. But I can be better."

Saitoh pulled out a stat sheet. "MVP in your third year of high school, averaging 28.8 points per game, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.3 assists. Do you see what your problem is?"

"Assists," he replied, but silently disagreed. Shohoku had needed a forward with explosive offense and the ability to find the basket. He had given it to them. If the team had needed a playmaker, he was sure he could have risen to the occasion. Every player had a role, and he had played his to a tee.

"Do you think you're bigger than the team?"

_So… he wants to see if I'm a team player?_

"No, Sensei."

"That's good." The older man leaned forward. "I want to make one thing very clear. Maki, Sendoh, Eda, all of them were MVPs. You are nothing special. I don't care if you were selected for All-Japan. I have little patience for egos, Sendoh can tell you that."

Kaede's eyes blazed with anger at the slight, but he forced himself to be still. "Hai," he said quietly.

"I hear you were recently married." The sudden change of topic caught him off-guard, and for just a split second his mind flitted to Yanagi. Saitoh's voice snapped him back. "How dedicated are you to basketball?"

"A hundred percent." Kaede replied, without skipping a beat.

"That's good. Rukawa, this is a very formative period in your basketball career. What you do in college will define you as a player, often permanently." Saitoh glanced at the door. "It frustrates me when players fail to live up to their full potentials because of trivial distractions."

_Is he referring to Sendoh…?_

"You have the potential to become the number one college player in Japan, Rukawa. Do not waste it."

Saitoh's words lit up a fire within him. "I know."

* * *

Even though it was just a practice match, scores of Seikei students had turned up to support their school team. Since Todai was visiting from Tokyo, their supporters were few, which was just as well since the score was now 34-18 to Seikei, 15 minutes into the game.

"We'll give them a show," Coach Saitoh had told his players before the game. And what a show it was. The synergy between Sendoh and Rukawa was incredible, the former primarily playing a supporting role with the rookie as the main scorer on the inside. On the outside, Koshino's three-pointers had caught nothing but net, putting further pressure on the defense.

Todai currently had possession and had attacked their way into the paint, but Maki managed to cut in and steal a pass. The crowd cheered as Rukawa and Sendoh were already on the fast break.

"Sendoh!" Maki called, shooting him an overhead pass.

Sendoh caught it and dribbled a few quick paces before lobbing it up towards the basket. Understanding his intention, Rukawa leapt up and slammed in the alley-oop, causing the crowd to go wild.

The score at half time was 42-20 to Seikei. Unfortunately for the visiting team, things did not improve in the second half, even with Maki resting on the bench.

Koshino inbounded to Sendoh, who dribbled almost leisurely up the court. It was clear from his demeanor that he had stopped taking the game seriously. Sensing his lack of focus, the opposing point guard tried to swipe the ball, but Sendoh pulled it back and drove quickly to the free-throw line, leaving his opponent in the dust. Another player came forward to mark him but he spied the opportunity, lobbing a no-look pass to the semi-open Rukawa. The defense realised their mistake and almost instantly, Rukawa found himself double-teamed. Sendoh motioned for the ball back but Rukawa ignored him, shaking off his defenders with a dazzling double crossover before nailing a fadeaway jump shot. The gym erupted with thunderous cheers.

"Nice play, but you shouldn't have forced that," Sendoh chided the rookie. "Koshino was wide open." Rukawa simply shrugged and fell back into defense.

When the final whistle blew, the scoreboard read 86 – 45 to Seikei.

Even with the resounding win, the mood in the Seikei locker room was subdued. "Don't get cocky," Coach Saitoh warned. "Todai was far from my first choice for a practice game. Shonan and Keio will not be so easy." True to his reputation, the coach then proceeded to dress down each individual player. The players simply sat on the benches with their heads bowed, taking it all in. Masumi sat grimly to one side, scribbling notes as necessary.

"Rukawa. You scored 44 points, but at least 20 of those would have had a much better chance of finding the net if you had passed the damned ball. I don't know if you are stupid or blind, but fix it before the next game."

Kaede clenched his fists, seething quietly with a towel over his head. He did not look up.

"Sendoh – " the coach sighed. "I'm not even going to bother."

Sendoh simply stared into space, looking as if he hadn't heard Saitoh at all.

"Koshino, you let your man score 12 points in the second half. Why did this happen?"

Koshino winced a little but kept his eyes on the ground.

By the time Saitoh was done, the Seikei players exit the gym looking like death itself. For the first time in his life, Kaede actually felt glad to be leaving the gym. A second longer and he might have punched his coach in the face. For now, he just wanted to get home quickly, eat, and take a nice nap. Perhaps Yanagi would have some edible food ready and waiting, for a change. The thought amused him; Yanagi could no sooner cook than the sun could rise from the west. Until then, perhaps her instant ramen wasn't so bad.

"You all did well," Maki told the team, sensing the defeated morale. "Rukawa, you survived your first debrief with Coach Saitoh. Well done."

"I'm going home," Kaede announced abruptly.

"We're supposed to go to your house," Sendoh reminded him. "I hope you have liquor."

"I need a drink," Koshino said hoarsely. "A really strong one."

Masumi smiled brightly and gave the former Ryonan players a pat on the back. "We'll pick some up before heading over."

Kaede groaned inwardly, remembering the housewarming party Yanagi had arranged. All he wanted right now was to take a nice, peaceful nap, and if he couldn't do it at home in his bed, he would do it elsewhere. _The rooftop, perhaps?_ He wasn't picky when it came to sleeping locations. He glanced upwards at the late afternoon sky; it looked clear enough. _Probably won't rain. That works. _ He started walking towards one of the school buildings without a word. He would nap there for a couple of hours and, with any luck, these louts otherwise known as the Seikei basketball team would be out of his house by then.

"Eh? Rukawa-kun!" Masumi called after him. She turned to the team, frowning. "Is he always like this?"

Maki grinned. "He's different, yeah."

"I guess he'll make his own way home," said Sendoh. "Maki, did you drive? I have the address."

"The liquor store first," Koshino reminded.

"Yeah," the tanned point guard nodded and motioned the boys to follow. "My car's this way."

* * *

They arrived an hour later at the Rukawa residence, a few bottles of liquor in tow.

"Nice house," Koshino whistled in appreciation.

Akira murmured in agreement, noting the expensive-looking dark wood floor and accents. The décor was minimalistic but luxurious, like those you would find in a modern five-star hotel. Unlike Maki, Rukawa didn't look wealthy at all so this was a big surprise. He could picture Rukawa living in this house, though – it was nice, but cold. There were no photographs on the wall, no personal artifacts lying around that gave any hint as to who lived there. It was a blank canvas, much like its owner.

Yanagi greeted them politely, dressed casually in a T-shirt and shorts. "Please make yourself at home." She peered out the door. "Kaede isn't with you?"

"We thought he would make his own way," Masumi replied. "He's not back yet?"

Their host's smile faded a little and she muttered something inaudible under her breath before managing a strained laugh. "I'm sure he'll be back soon. But you all must be hungry after the game. Let's eat!"

She led them out to the impressive backyard to wait for dinner to be served. Eda and Maki decided to muck around on the half-court while Masumi went over to help Yanagi at the barbeque pit.

Akira opted to lie back on an outdoor chaise, staring up at the darkening sky as the events of the night before replayed in his mind.

"You alright, bro?" Koshino asked gently from the chaise beside him.

Akira smiled wanly. "I called her last night."

"You _what_?" His friend sat up immediately, a concerned look on his face. "Why would you do that?"

"Don't worry, I just wanted to offer my congratulations," he lied. The truth was– he didn't really know what spurred him to do it. He just picked up the phone and dialed, not even expecting the number to still work, not at all prepared to hear her voice on the other end of the line.

"Bullshit."

"What? It's good manners," he insisted innocently. "I have no intention of playing the jealous ex-boyfriend, if that's what you're thinking."

Koshino sighed. "I wish you would just be honest with me. It's just… she's bad for you. She's like a poison that you need to get out of your system, but you can't. It's been 3 years and you don't even _want_ to. In short," the shooting guard pointed at him accusingly, "you're mad."

Every word Koshino just said was true, but Akira merely laughed. "Don't be dramatic. I moved on ages ago." _Why did I do it? _He thought to himself. _Why did I call her? _

"Then why were you so distracted during the game?" Koshino pressed on, relentless. "Did she say something to you last night?"

Before he could reply, Masumi's voice from behind startled them both. "You lazy bums need to come help," she hissed.

"Jeez, Masumi-san!" Koshino hissed back. "Why are you creeping around?"

"Rukawa's wife is totally clueless. She's already burnt two batches of chicken," the team manager whispered urgently. "At this rate we're never going to get to eat."

Akira stood up. "I'll help."

"Do I have to?" Koshino groaned. Masumi hit him on the head. "Fine, fine."

The trio trooped over to the barbeque pit. "Yanagi-san, why don't we take a break?" Masumi said sweetly. "Let these boys be useful, for once."

"You really don't have to – " she inhaled some smoke and coughed violently. "I'm fine," she spluttered.

Akira placed a firm arm around her shoulder. "We insist," he smiled charmingly, steering her away. "This is no work for a lady."

With Akira and Koshino helming the barbeque pit, there was soon a steady supply of delicious grilled meats, which the guests helped themselves to. Koshino looked on enviously while tending to a few sticks of mushrooms. "I want to eat, too."

"Go on and take a break," Akira offered. "I'll do this."

"More beef please," Eda called from the table.

"Tch… that guy can really eat," Koshino grumbled. "I'd better stay and help."

Yanagi walked up to the barbeque pit, trying to wave away some of the smoke. "I'm so sorry, both of you must be really hungry," she said apologetically. "Can I help?"

"How about you take my place for a bit?" Koshino said quickly, handing her the fan. "I'll just grab a fast bite."

"I can manage on my own, Yanagi-san," Akira assured her, shooting his friend a dirty look. "You should go eat."

"I can't leave my guests to do all the work now, can I?" She smiled cheerfully up at him. "Sorry, I'm not very good at this. Never barbequed anything before."

He laughed. "Leave that up to me. You can help with fanning the coals, but not too vigorously."

"Hai, senpai!" She placed a hand on her hip and started fanning gently, coughing every now and then at the smoke.

He stole a few glances at the girl beside him. Her face was scrunched up in concentration and red from the heat, with beads of perspiration trickling down her face and neck. Her raven-black hair was tucked into a haphazard ponytail, with stray hairs clinging to the sides of her face. Not a great look on anyone.

"Do you run at the park often?" He asked, breaking the silence.

"Yes, every morning." She smiled at him. "Why don't you come more often? You never know who you'll meet," she teased.

"Indeed," he replied with amusement, thinking back to their morning encounter. "Doesn't Rukawa run with you?"

"He loves his bed too much." She sighed. "You won't believe how much effort it takes to wake him up in the morning."

"Where is that guy, anyway? Shouldn't he be here?"

She bit her lip, suddenly looking crestfallen. "I don't know. I reminded him, but I guess… I guess something urgent must have come up."

_Trouble in paradise?_ Akira thought. "I'm sure he wouldn't leave you alone like this unless it were important," he consoled, not believing a word he had just said. Rukawa seemed like just the type to pull something like this.

She merely nodded and turned back to watch the coals.

Two hours later, the players were sitting around the living room enjoying drinks and playing video games. Eda and Masumi were engaged in a fierce game of console Street Fighter, with the petite manageress soundly beating the big center.

"Beaten by a girl, Eda?" Koshino yelled, clearly tipsy. "Let me show you how it's done!" He snatched the controller.

Maki smiled, shaking his head. "Don't drink if you can't hold your liquor, boy."

Akira sat quietly on the end of the couch, unable to bring himself to join the banter. _"She's like a poison that you need to get out of your system but… you don't even want to," _Koshino's voice echoed, full of reproach. With a sigh, he grabbed one of the half-empty bottles from the coffee table and decided to head out to the pool for some peace and quiet. He opened the sliding doors leading to the back and stepped out, shutting the doors – and the noise – behind him. Closing his eyes, he took a few moments to appreciate the cool night breeze on his skin and the blissful silence punctuated only by the sound of crickets. He gazed up at the sky– it was as beautiful a night as any, and the crescent moon and stars shone brilliantly in the darkness. There was a time long ago when he had felt an inexplicable comfort in thinking that she could be looking up at the very same moon, even though they spent their nights apart. Of course, since she moved to a different time zone, the thought was ridiculous. A bitter laugh escaped his throat. He knew better than to indulge in such foolish notions, now.

"Rough night?" A familiar voice floated to him from the pool. Yanagi was sitting by the pool's edge, her legs submerged in the water from the knees down.

He had wanted to be alone, but he supposed this was still better than trying to be jovial around his teammates. He went over and sat down next to her, swinging his own legs into the pool. "Just looking for some peace and quiet."

She pressed a finger to her lips playfully and dropped her voice to barely a whisper. "I'll be sure to keep my voice down, then."

"Yes you should, before I tell you to get off my lawn," he replied in mock seriousness before letting out a chuckle. "Though I suppose this would really be _your_ lawn."

She laughed at that, and he took a swig from the bottle before holding it up to her. "Want a drink?"

"No, thank you," she declined politely and shook her head, as if it were a rote response. "I'm not a good drinker."

"You'd make me drown my sorrows alone?" he said with a hurt expression on his face. "You wound me."

"Well… I guess I have some sorrows of my own," she relented, a hint of mischief in her eyes. She took the bottle and sniffed it gingerly before making a face. "Ugh."

He laughed. "Should I get a glass for you? Or will it be the bottle?"

"The bottle will be fine."

"You sure?"

"Here I go." She pinched her nose with one hand and tilted the bottle to her mouth with the other, taking big gulps.

"Hey, hey," he reached out in alarm, taking the bottle away. "Not so much." She covered her mouth, looking sick and trying to keep the liquid down with difficulty. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"I feel like I'm on fire," she giggled. "I guess that was too much."

"You'll probably be out cold in an hour." He smiled, wincing. "What will I tell your husband?"

"He doesn't care about these things. Don't you know him well?"

"Only as a player. He's not exactly the chatty type."

She nodded and dipped a finger in the water, aimlessly tracing circles. "I see."

"Then again, he doesn't seem like the marrying type either. So what do I know," he replied, only half in jest. It was true that none of them knew anything about Rukawa beyond the fact that he was an arrogant prick obsessed with basketball.

"Were you surprised when you heard we were married?"

"That would be an understatement." He took a swig from the bottle and smiled at her. "You must be an amazing girl."

She blinked. "Why do you say that?"

"He's a cold guy," he replied, shrugging. "I imagine he would only fall in love with something extraordinary."

She remained silent for a few moments, her brown eyes gazing down into the pool as she paddled her legs gently under the water. "He's not in love with me," she said softly.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm afraid I wasn't entirely truthful with you yesterday." She turned to him, an apologetic smile on her face. "Do you really want to know how we met?"

His interest was piqued, but he did not wish to press her. "Only if you wish to tell me."

"We did meet at a wedding… our wedding. Last week." Her voice quivered slightly and she took a deep breath before continuing. "Our parents arranged it for business."

Akira didn't know what to say, so he just stared at her, speechless. It all made sense, now – Rukawa didn't have a single romantic bone in his body, so his sudden marriage had come as a shock to everyone. But arranged marriages were so rare in this day and age that it hadn't even occurred to him that this could be one of them. His mind went back to that day, when she came by the gym. The rookie had been quite cold to her, and altogether something had seemed off.

"Well, there it is." She put on a brave smile, but a few tears rolled gently down her cheeks. "Sometimes I still can't believe that I'm here. Every morning I wake up thinking I'm still in Kyoto, and this was all just a dream."

There was something about her that made him want to take her into his arms and kiss her tears away, but even under the alcohol's influence, he knew it was inappropriate. He settled for placing a gentle hand around the side of her face, brushing the tears away with his thumb. "Is it a good dream, at least?"

She shrank from his touch and hurriedly wiped the tears away with her own hands. "Sorry, I'm being silly."

"Why do you say that?"

"I know he could have done much better than me. I should be counting my lucky stars instead of sitting here and feeling sorry for myself. Right?" She gave him a small smile. "It's just that, sometimes… I feel like he's so far away. He's so far out of my reach, like – " she stretched out an open palm towards the sky. "– like the moon. He's cold but he shines for everyone to admire, and I'm just another blade of grass on the lawn."

Even though she had just poured her heart out to him, he couldn't help but burst out laughing. "Did you just compare Rukawa to the moon? You're getting drunk faster than I thought."

Her face immediately turned an even darker shade of crimson. "Senpai, did you really have to laugh?" She bit her lip in indignation, and he thought it was one of the most adorable things he'd ever seen. "I was being serious."

"I don't know what it is about him that makes the girls go crazy," he admitted, looking at her earnestly. "But you, my dear, are definitely not just another blade of grass on the lawn." It was not a complete lie. Sure she wasn't model material, but she was still a pretty girl with a sweet personality – the kind of girl his mother would like the look of. She was very different from the girls he usually brought home, and he suddenly wondered what she would be like in bed. _Probably very shy at first, but could be slowly coaxed to be pliant… _his heart hammered wildly as he started to mentally undress her, working his way from her slim, toned thighs, all the way up to the slender slope of her neck and her cherry red lips, slightly parted as if in invitation.

Nearly overcome with need, it took all his self-control to tear his eyes away. He stood up abruptly, not trusting himself to stay a second longer. "I'll be right back," he said hurriedly and turned to leave as she looked on in bewilderment.

* * *

Akira splashed his face with cool water and frowned into the bathroom mirror. _Get a grip_, he chided himself. _She's not even your type._

If she had been any other girl, they would probably already be hooking up in some dark corner of the house, never to see each other again after that night. It was very rare for him to have to exercise any kind of restraint when it came to these things; the girls usually found him irresistible while he just wanted a warm body. He had no doubt that he could have had Yanagi if he wanted – she was intoxicated and emotionally vulnerable. But there were some lines that even _he_ would not cross; fooling around with a married woman was one of them. _Although, can theirs really be called a marriage?_

He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths to collect himself. It was probably time for him to go, just in case anything happened. All he had to do now was go outside and tell her thank you, he had a lovely night, and he was going to take his leave now. _Right. Sounds easy enough…_

* * *

_This is my usual pace_, Kaede thought to himself stubbornly even though he felt his legs pedaling ever so slightly faster than usual. _I'm not rushing back for anyone._

He had only intended to nap on the rooftop for a couple of hours, but of course, when he woke, it was already well into the night. Yanagi was probably furious at having to entertain his teammates all by herself – not to say she didn't bring it upon herself by organizing this stupid party in the first place. Still, the thought made him uneasy. She often went out of her way to be nice to him; he supposed the least he could do was not piss her off.

With a sigh, he gave up all pretense. He was married now, and that meant having to minimize conflict with the other party so his own life could go on with no disruptions. _And sometimes, minimizing conflict means rushing home so you can appear like you give a damn_, he rationalized. Leaning further into his bike, he picked up the pace and the streets sped by.

* * *

"Hey guys, I'm taking off," Akira announced. "I'll just say goodbye to Yanagi-san first."

"I'll come with you," Koshino sulked loudly. "Someone's been hogging the controller all night."

Masumi – who was now beating Maki at Street Fighter – laughed at this. "Don't be a sore loser, Koshino Hiroaki. We agreed that whoever wins gets to keep playing."

"You must have cheated," the shooting guard said hotly, face reddening. "I don't know how, but – "

"There, there," Akira cut in. "Hiro, why don't you come outside with me?"

Masumi and Koshino stuck their tongues out at each other as the latter followed Akira outside.

"What were you two doing outside, anyway?" Koshino sounded slightly suspicious as they stepped out onto the patio. He was all too aware of Akira's womanizing tendencies.

"Just talking. Wait – " Akira took a few quick steps towards the pool. "She's not here."

"Maybe she went back inside?"

Akira shook his head, a sense of foreboding washing over him. "We would've seen her. She was just here," he said, pointing to the spot where they had been just a few moments ago. Only the half-empty bottle was there, now.

Koshino inhaled sharply. "Fuck."

Not needing further elaboration, Akira dived into the pool and swam urgently towards the motionless figure at the bottom.

* * *

As he parked his bike in its usual station, Kaede heard his team manager's raucous laughter from inside the house. He fished his keys out from his pockets and, with a sigh, tried to think of more respectful ways to phrase "get out of my house". But the laughter died suddenly – and then, silence, except for the jangling of his keys. The suddenness of it made him very uneasy. He jammed his key into the keyhole and turned. _Click._

The living room was empty except for bags of chips, beer cans and liquor bottles strewn carelessly about. The sliding doors leading to the patio gaped open, beckoning him. Something was very wrong; he knew it in his gut.

He didn't bother with taking off his shoes or backpack before stalking across the living room and out onto the patio, where his teammates were standing in a semi-circle facing the pool. Nobody noticed him coming from behind. He wordlessly pushed them out of the way.

Yanagi lay on the floor, wet and motionless. Sendoh, also dripping wet, was administering CPR to her, breathing into her mouth and using both hands to pump her left chest. Kaede's whole body tensed and he stood frozen in place, not quite registering what he was seeing. _Is she…? _He clenched his fists, struggling to contain the surging panic within him as Sendoh repeated the motions over and over, to no effect.

_Isn't this what I wanted? To be alone?_

"Not like this," he whispered, so softly that nobody could hear.

As if to obey, Yanagi suddenly came to life, coughing and sputtering violently. Sendoh quickly helped her up to a sitting position as she continued to expel the water from her system. Relief crashed over Kaede like a wave; his muscles, so tensed before, relaxed so suddenly and completely that it almost made him stagger back. He closed his eyes, silently thanking whichever higher power had seen fit to preserve the life of that idiot girl.

Masumi rushed forward and helped to prop her up while Sendoh sank to the floor in exhaustion. "Are you alright?" He asked between deep breaths.

Yanagi nodded feebly in between coughs. "Thank you," she managed.

Kaede's relief instantly gave way to a cold fury. He stared at Sendoh distrustfully – whatever had happened, he was sure that the porcupine-head had something to do with it. "What did you do?" he asked in a low, dangerous voice, eyes never leaving Sendoh.

Sendoh looked up in surprise, only just noticing Kaede's presence. His lips curled into a conceited smirk as he returned the rookie's cold gaze. "I saved her life."

"Ah – what matters is that she's alright," Koshino cut in, sensing the tension between the two aces. "We were about to take our leave, weren't we, Akira?"

"It's getting late," Maki agreed. "We shouldn't impose on you any longer, but I think Sendoh needs a change of clothes."

Kaede gave his captain a grudging nod. "I'll go get towels and fresh clothes."

After Sendoh had changed into dry clothes, Kaede led his guests to the front door and bowed stiffly. "Thank you for coming."

Masumi gave him a pat on the arm. "Take care of her, Rukawa," she told him before piling into Maki's car with the rest.

_Okay, at least that's done with._ He watched them drive away before slamming the door shut. The loudness of the slam surprised him. _Why am I so angry?_

"What's wrong with you?" Yanagi frowned, staring at him like he was nuts. Her hair and clothes were still wet and clinging to her skin, but she had a towel wrapped around her to keep warm.

Something made him snap – he wasn't sure if it was her voice, or what she had said, or even just her presence.

"Do you enjoy putting yourself in danger?" His voice, a notch louder than usual, dripped with contempt. "How stupid are you?"

She recoiled slightly. "It's not like I did it on purpose. Why are you so mad?"

"What happened?" he asked quietly this time, trying to contain his anger.

"I… I just fell into the pool."

He narrowed his eyes. "Can't you swim?"

She bit her lip and gave a small shake of the head.

"What kind of idiot doesn't know how to swim?"

"Stop calling me an idiot! What is it to you anyway?" She spat angrily, colour creeping up to her cheeks. "Don't act like you care about me. If you did, you would've been home hours ago!"

He had never seen her this angry before; she seemed like a different person. _Am I just pretending to care?_ he thought as he walked towards her. In one swift motion, he pulled her head roughly towards his chest and inhaled deeply, recognising the distinct smell of alcohol. "You've been drinking," he sneered. This was undoubtedly the reason she fell into the pool. _Idiot. _ He pushed her away, and he realised as she went crashing down onto the floor that he had used too much force. _Shit. _She looked up at him, hurt and shock written plainly on her face. _I'm sorry_, he thought desperately, but the apology caught in his throat. "I didn't mean to do that," was all he could manage.

He bent down to try and help her up, but she froze him with a stare. "Don't touch me," she whispered, picking herself up until she was standing directly in front of him, shoulders squared in defiance. "You think you're so great, don't you? That just because you're some hot shot basketball player, it gives you the right to treat other people like crap?"

_That's not true,_ he thought numbly. _Is it?_

"I was drinking because I felt sad. Do you know why?"

_Because… _It did not take long for the realization to dawn on him. Because _I should have been there, but I wasn't._ He was not used to this. He had always done whatever he wanted without having to give an ounce of consideration for anyone; by the same token, no one had ever given a damn about what he did. _I'm sorry_, he thought lamely, but his mouth would not form the words.

She spun on her heel and marched towards and up the stairs, leaving him standing in the living room, staring blankly at the wall. _Why was I so angry?_

With a sinking dread, he realised what the answer was.

He didn't want to be alone.

* * *

"An arranged marriage?!" Koshino's eyes looked like they were going to pop out of his head. "I thought these things only happened to the mega rich. How rich are they?"

Akira shrugged as the two of them made their way up the stairs of their apartment block. It was a happy coincidence that Akira had moved into the apartment across from Koshino's when he first arrived in Kanagawa. Since then, they had been thick as thieves.

"Oi, Akira. You haven't told me about that phone call_."_

"There's really nothing much to tell."

"You're not getting away without giving me details," Koshino insisted stubbornly.

Akira sighed. "Fine. It was awkward and uncomfortable. She didn't even recognize my voice."

"You can't exactly blame her. It's been years."

_Yes, but I thought we were forever._ "I congratulated her and asked her how she was doing, and she said great. She asked me how I was doing, and I said great. That's it."

"That's it?"

"That's it," Akira repeated. "There was absolutely nothing else to talk about." There was a brief pause before he continued, a sad smile on his lips. "She was everything to me, but I don't even know her anymore." _I thought we were forever._

"Well, you know what they say. Time is a thief, and all that." They climbed the last few steps to the fifth floor, where their apartments were. "Personally, I think the sooner you forget her, the better."

"I guess."

Koshino hesitated outside the door to his house. "You'll be alright?"

"Yeah. See you Monday."

"See ya."

* * *

Akira peered out into the night sky from his bedroom window, the curtain fluttering gently against the wind. There was something else about the phone call that deeply unsettled him, something he had held back from Koshino.

It was the fact that he had felt… nothing.

The sound of her voice had once been able to send his pulse racing, but now… nothing. Even as they were speaking on the phone, he realised he no longer cared about how or what she was doing. For so long, loving her had become a habit… but now he was truly free, and that scared him.

Time was truly the greatest thief of all.

* * *

**P/S:** **I'm not usually one for lyrics, but I thought this song by WANDS (one of the ending themes to the Slam Dunk anime) was such a perfect fit for this chapter. **

_All alone in this city, like an empty can that could be thrown away.  
__If it's only love after we know everything about each other,  
__Then let's sleep forever._

_Until the end of the world, we won't be apart,  
__For countless nights I had wished for this.  
__Why do only the irretrievable times shine?  
__Even a weary heart will break.  
__These melancholic fleeting thoughts… on this tragic night._

- 'Sekai ga Owaru Made Wa' by WANDS


End file.
